guadalupe monastery

HISTORY

The early history of the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe back to the late thirteenth century, in the beginnings a little chapel, built in honor of the image of the Virgin found in the bank of Guadalupe River.

In the early fourteenth century, a second church was built, whose size would still be able to accommodate the growing influx of pilgrims who were attracted by the legends and increasing influence of this Virgin.

In 1879 the sanctuary was declared a National Monument and began a campaign for restoration supported by several well-known writers. In 1906, is declared the Board of Our Lady of Guadalupe of Extremadura.

As a consequence of this revival was the arrival at the monastery of the Franciscan Order in 1908, by order of Alfonso XIII, this religious order dedicated his care over a century restoring and expanding its appearance.

The declaration of Historic-Artistic Monument extends to the monastery in 1929. Soon , in 1955, Pius XIII raises the sanctuary to the rank of Basilica.

ART

The Royal Monastery of Santa María de Guadalupe is also a sanctuary of art, from the details of the architecture of the building, with its different styles of construction, to small treasures and relics, not forgetting the important pieces of sculpture, painting and crafts that it guards.

A valuable collection of paintings, which highlights the set of paintings by Francisco de Zurbarán, and murals by Fray Juan Manuel Ruiz de la Peña.

The decoration in the chapel of Our Lady of Guadalupe, has paintings by Lucas Jordan, representing various scenes from the Life of the Virgin, as the Flight into Egypt or the Annunciation.

Other painters illustrated the Monastery such as Domenikos Theotokopoulos El Greco, Goya, Juan de Mena, Adrián Isembrant and Juan Correa de Vivar, among others.

Relating sculpture, religious carvings abound, starting with the very figure of the Virgin of Guadalupe. Highlights the work of Egas Cueman, and attributed the triptych of Calvary, at the Museum of Painting and Sculpture, where they also found a small carving of the crucifixion, possibly by Michelangelo and Ecce Homo, attributed to Pedro Mena, among other pieces.